Aeroplane.



Patented J an. 5

n I INVENTOR 1 79a? ck mdi man/VH8 4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

F. PfPbdTE.

ABROPLANE.

APPLICATION FILED No.22, 91s.

WITNESSES F. F. FOOTE.

AEROPLANE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 22, 191 3. I

Patented Jan. 5, 1915.

$HEETS-SHEET 3.

WITNESSES l/VVE/VTOR I 11% fifiazaze ATTORNEK? 1o "aeroplanes,

1.5 Will prevent the machine from 2o provide a, novel formv etc so A further 35 planes ca 40 in the-following speeiqficatio t5 applicet1on,'. in which sin1i1ar reference parts in the several to eclghig. 2 is a plan vievv ot FREDRICK I. FOOTE, 0F FALIS CHURCH, VIRGIN IA,

AERUEPLANL.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that l, FREDBIC a citizen of the United States and a resident of Falls Church, in the county of Fairfax. sand; State of Virginia, have madecertain new and useful Improvements in Acreplanes, of which the followingisa specification;

Y My invention relates to i n Foo'rn,

Improvements in and it .consistsin the combina tions, constructions, anol arrangementshere in described and claimed." :in object of. my invention is. to provide a device. having stabilizing i means. Which plunging. headlong and by, means of which it may be ought to earth you an; even balance. fore... anolaft and laterally. I 1 1 further. object of ,myinventioh .istfo. i xtensible and..colf lapsible stabilizing. planes, and means for i manipulating them. simultaneously. A further. object of my -i-nvention'is to. .provide auxiliarystabilizing planes at the f of the device which may be extended; in horizontal direction to co-act with the. first mentioned stabilizing planes, and. the main sustainin vice to earth b g. plane so as to bring the; deg. y gravity on an even balance). object of my invention is to. provide pneumatic, means. f,oroperating both sets of stabilizing planes with a special. device for necessitatingthe raising of the rear; elevating nfbe collapsed, thereby any danger of ai headlong. dive suoldlendecrease of resistance att end ofthe machine; 5 i Other objects and adv-antages W clue. to the; he forward ill appear. 11,. and; the novel j features of'theutleiicewill be particularly pointed. out intheappenoleol claims; lily-invention j is illustrated in the. accompanying drawings. forming ;.pa rt of this characters. indicate like views and 1n.trhi c h- Figural isqa section thr agitate sea vvith the forward stabilizin g planes extenoh' the device .shoW- ing both sets of the; stabilizing planes 6231-. tended, .lFig. 3jis afront vievv, l ig. i is a detailed view 1shoWing-theaneans for .ex', te hs a .co rs nathe ten ara tabilia Specification of ."Letters Patent.

ll have shown a .hiplane.

hers 4, vertically eaten tensible and c and 10 planes aref'maole of,

in the manner of a edge or each, of

plane before-the forward. stabilizing.

preventing sustaining plane 7.; .Une endi mounted; in hearings 1i? and; which extend transversely ofthe machine shove thelorver being pivoted at 13 and is connected by meansi aten'tectlillanl l Application filed December 22, 1913. Serial 1 10. 898,229.:

a section along the line 2 gt is a .rletailedl plan. portion of the. machine ary stabilizing planes colig. 7 is a section through the and. the. valves controlling'th,

ing planes, Fig. 5 is s e of Fi .2, F1? view of the rear; showing the auxili lapsed, and i air cylinder, x /linden.

In carrying out my invention l may malse use of an aeroplane not either the nionoplanc type or. the biplane type in the drawings This comprises I ds or runners 8., gitudinal. mom cling.v rear members 5 and .crossnienibers, such as that shown at 6. ,Carried. bythe frame. is the upper sustaining plane? .andLthelower plane it These planes may he niacleof any suitable material and may be braced in any suitable mannein i Abovethe .u

the ,uprights 1 braces .21 ski rearwarclly eatencling lon pper plane 7 are a pair of en-. ollapsible stabilizing planesll respectively. These stabilizing" Strips, nit-Wood. covereri al sothat theywill foltl folding fan... The lower ese stabilizing planes secured to a bracket such as those shown Eltancl it) Fig These hrachets l" .1 h-s hapetlezrteusions9 ancl 10 respectively which serve as holding means for the planes when in their collapseclconciitioin as shown in Fig. 4;

Secured tothe upper encls of the. stabiliz ing planes 9 and 10 are levers i1 and 12 re spectively. rue lever: 11 ispiroted. at 13 and enteritis through a. slot 14: in the upper of the lever is pivotally secureclfhy means of the lin to the encl 16 of atcranhshaftglfi Which with flexible .niateri sustaining plane "8. ,lhe lever; enteritis through a slotli \1n the sustaining planet,

and heingprovulerl with a link 15 16? oi? the crank shaft pits Will-he. seen-.1; from Fig, 1, there is a lever. ll" eonnectecl' with the plane 9 which is similar. to the a lever ill but .Whichpasses in front of the. A forward edge o'fthe uppersustaining.plane of a link 15 to the, end 16 of the cranin shaft. 16, A;

s milar ererllflfis connected to theiforwartl which is connected to the encl T:

, a valve handle or arm 22 having an eXten-' sion 23. The upper end of this arm is conconnection 24 with the foot lever 25.

the crank shaft 16 in a similar manner that the lever 11 iscOnnected with the end 16 of the crank shaft 16. It will thus be seen that each end of the crank shaft 15 is connected by two levers which operate upon one of the stabilizing planes.

The means for operating the crank shaft is best shown in Fig. '1. It consists of an air cylinder 17 which is provided with a piston 18 and having ports 19 ,and 20 controlled by a rotary valve 21. The latter has nected by means of a rod or other suit%ble he arm 22 is normally held back by a spring 26 so as to leave the valve 21 in position to communicate with the port 19. At 27 and 28 are outlet valves which are operated by means of a rod 29 secured to the arm 22.

A pipe 30 leads from any suitable source of compressed air carried by the aeroplane (not shown). This pipe communicates with the-valve casing 31 having a valve 82 controlled by an arm 33 which is connected by a rod or other suitable connection 34 with a foot lever 35. A spring 36 tends to hold the valve 32 in a normally closed position.

A bracket 3? on the valve casing 31 supports a bell crank lever 38, one arm of which is normally held by aspring 39 in the path of the projection 23 on the lever 22. 1

At the rear end of the aeroplane is an elerating plane 40 which may be. manipulated in any suitable manner as by means of a rod 41 attached to a projecting arm 42 at one end, and to a lever 43 at the other end. The

arm 42 is connected by means of a rod 44 with the bell crank lever 38 (see Figs. 1.

and 7). v

Pivotally secured to the rearwardly extending upper horizontal members 4' are the: ribs 45 and 45*. The rib 46v is plvotally secured to the rib 45 while the rib 46 is pivot-- ally secured to the rib 45*. The forward ends of the ribs 46 and 46 are curved to provide cam surfaces, and the forward ends of theribs 45 and 45 are bent outwardly as shown in' Fig. 6. A yoke 47 is provided I v which straddles the two sets of ribs 4546 and 45 -46. This yoke is connected by means of a downwardly and forwardly ex tending rod 48 to an arm 49 which is carried by the crank shaft 16.

T he-ribs 45 and 46 are connected by fab ric 50 so ast-o form an extensible plane,

while asimilar fabric 50 connects the ribs 45* and 46*. The planes formed by the extensible fabric members on opposite sides of the center of the machine are connected together by tension members such as the .45 and 45.

52 with the frame members 4, the springs 53 also being provided for taking up any slack. From the foregoing description of the various parts of the device the, operation thereof may be readily understood. As stated before, the device is rimarily designed for useas an emergency r evice for enabling the aviator to descend safely to the ground. Normally the front stabilizin planes are collapsed, as shown in Fig. 4, an

the rear stabilizing planes are collapsed as shown in Fig. 6. I however, the aviator should lose control of the. machine, and it should tend to plunge downwardly, he

resses forwardly on the foot lever 35. Air 1s admitted through thepipe'30, valve 32, and valve 21, into the port 19,'forcin piston 18 tothe rear. The piston re 18 connects with a rock arm '54 which is secured to the shaft 16. The shaft 16 is therefore rotated from the position shown in Fig. 4 tothatshown in Fig. 3. The levers the 11 and 12, and their companion levers '11 and 12 are swung on their pivots l3 and 13 thereby extending the stabilizing planes in the manner shown in Fig. 3. It will be seen that these planes are inclined slightl from the vertical. The turning of the cran r shaft 16 will cause the rotation of the arm 49 whichwill cause the yoke 47 to slide along the frame members 4 1n the direction shown I by the arrow (see Fig. 6). When the ends of the yoke have passed the pivotal connec-' tions of the inner ribs 45 and 45 with the frame members 4, the ribs will be swun outwardly from the frame members, an

when on further movement the ends of the yoke engage-the cam surfaces or bent ends of the ribs 46 and 46*, these ribs will be swung outwardly from their companion ribs The result is to suddenly extend therear auxiliary stabilizing planes in a horizontal direction. With both the front and rear stabilizing lanes extended the machine will be kept f i'om plunging, but will descend to the 'round on an even keel fore and aft, and if the-motor is running. will at the same time mpve forwardly. With the stabilizing planes extended there is also no possibility of the machine diving laterally, since when the machine tips to one side it will, of course, bring the'stabilizing plane on that side with its full surface presented to the resisting air, while the stabilizing plane on the opposite side will, of course, be brought into a more nearly vertical position. This will quickly right the machine so that the machine will come down'on an even keel laterally as well as fore and aft,

being balanced by gravity.

' The stabilizing planes may be reefed Ill) or collapsed while the machine is in the air. It is dangerous to do this. however, unless the elevating plane is first raised, as for ascent, since if the forward stabilizing planes should be suddenly collapsed, the withdrawal of the air-resisting surfaces might cause the machine to dive forwardly.

In order to prevent an accident of this kind I provide the bell crank lever 38 which, as stated above, is in the path of the projection 23 of the lever 22 and which prevents the movement of the lever. When the lever 43 is manipulated to raise the elevating plane 40, as for ascending, the movement of the latter will cause the rod 44 to shift the bell crank lever 38 so as to permit the movement of the lever 22. The shifting of the lever 22 is accomplished either by a continued movement of the foot lever 35, in which case a projection 35 on the lever 35 comes into contact with the lever 25, or by direct pressure on the foot lever 25. This Will reverse the direction of flow of the air which will now enter through the port 20 and thus force the piston 18 in the opposite direction, the valve -28 being open to permit the exit of air on one side of the piston, and the valve 27 being closed by the member 29. The reverse movement of the piston rod 18 will again bring the crank shaft into the positions shown in Fig. 4, and will thus collapse the front stabilizing planes. At the same time the rearward movement of the rod 48 is occasioned by the swinging of the arm 4-9 and the yoke 47 will resume its original position (shown in Fig. 6) thereby closing the rear auxiliary stabilizing planes, this action also being aided by means of the tension members 51.

I desire to call particular attention to the fact that the stabilizing of the machine so as to bring it to earth on an even keel fore and aft and laterally is effected solely by gravity in conjunction with the main sustaining planes which coac'ts with both the front and rear stabilizing planes.

In considering the ways in which a machine might fall, it may be stated that certain machines such as the Farman machine have a slightly lifting rear surface, and

it depends on speed to balance it fore and aft. If the collapsible rear auxiliary stabilizing plane is put on such a machine this lifting effect would have to be increased a little bit to give more lift when the stabilizing plane is reefed. If a machine should start to fall backward the rear surface would be expanded offering more resistance to'the air when the machine falls backwardlv than when it is proceeding in a forward direction. This together with. the main planes and the backward stabilizing planes restores the balance by the action of gravity fore and aft and laterally. Furthermore the head resistance of the forward stabilizing planes overcomes the small lift of the rear plane on a machine such as the Farman machine, in a dive, so that a mable rear stabilizing planes would not offer excessive hindrance or resistance to the head resistance of the forward stabilizers which will bring the machine down on an even balance. Thus, it will be seen that no matter whether the machine is diving forward or backward, a device equipped with stabilizing planes such as herein described will 1be brought to earth by gravity on an even (eel aware that other forms of the device based upon the same general idea might be made, but I consider as my own all such modifications as fairly fall within the spirit and the scope of the invention.

I claim:

l. The combination with an aeroplane having a main supporting plane, of a pair of collapsible stabilizing planes disposed above said main sustaining I secured, and means connected with the upper members of the stabilizing planes for extending said stabilizing inclined at an angle toward the perpendicular.

3. The combination with an aeroplane having a main supporting plane, of a pair of collapsible stabilizing planes disposed above said main sustaining plane and each comprising aplurality of longitudinal members, flexibly connected together and adapted to fold one upon the other, and means for extending said stabilizing planes simultaneously and maintaining them in a position inclined at an angle toward the perpendicular, the said stabilizing planes inclining downwardly and inwardly toward each other.

4, The combination with an aeroplane having a frame, and a main sustaining planeextending trans ersely of said frame, of a pair of collapsible stabilizing planes disposed above said main sustaining plane and longitudinally of said frame, the said stabilizing planes each comprising members adapted to fold one upon the other. supports to which the lower members of said,

stabilizing planes are secured, a crank shaft, means for turning said crank shaft, and

plane and each comprising members, adapted to fold one planes simultaneously and maintaining them in a position connections between the said crank sh. ft and the upper members of said stabilizing planes for extending said planes sim'ulta-.

- for rotating said shaft to extend said stabilizing planes simultaneously and to collapse them simultaneously.

6. The combination with an aeroplane having a frame and a main supporting plane carried thereby, of a shaft disposed beneath said main supporting plane, pneumatic means for rotating said shaft, a pair of stabilizing planes carreid by said frame above said main sustaining frame, levers pivotally connected to said frame, said levers being connected to said stabilizing planes, and means connected with said shaft for operating said levers to extend or collapse said stabilizing planes.

7. The combination with an aeroplane having a main supporting plane, of a pair of collapsible stabilizing. planes disposed above said main sustaining plane, means for extendingsaid stabilizing planes and for maintaining the latter at an angle to, the vertical, collapsible auxiliary stabilizing planes disposed in the rear of said main supporting plane, and means for simultaneously extending said auxiliary collapsible stabilizing planes in a horizontal direction, and .for maintaining them in their extended position.

8. In an aeroplane, a pair of frame members, a'rib pivoted to each of said frame members and having an extension, a second rib pivoted to the extension of.the first named rib, and a yoke arranged to straddle both frame members and to engage the second named ribs.

9. In an aeroplane, a pair of frame members, a rib pivoted to each of said frame members and having an extension, a second rib pivoted to the extension of the first named rib and having a cam surface, a slidable yoke arranged to straddle both frame membersand to engage the second named ribs, and means for moving said yoke to engage said cam surfaces thereby causing the spreading of the ribs.

10. The combination with an aeroplane having a main frame and a main supporting piaiie, of collapsible stabilizing planes disposed above said main supporting plane, means for simultaneously collapsing the stabilizing planes, a rear elevating plane, means for raising the said elevating plane, and means for preventing the collapsing of the stabilizing planes until the elevating plane has been raised.

11. The combination with an aeroplane having a main frame and a main supporting plane, of a pair of collapsible stabilizing planes disposed above said main sustaining plane, a pair of collapsible auxiliary stabilizing planes disposed in the rear of said main supporting plane, means for simultaneously collapsing both sets of said collapsible stabilizing planes, a rear elevating plane, and means for preventing the collapsing of the stabilizing planes until the elevating plane has been lifted as for ascent.

12. The combination with an aeroplane having a main supporting plane, of a pair of collapsible stabilizing planes disposed above said main supporting plane, the said planesbeing secured at their lower edges and means connected with the upper edges of the said planes for extending 'said planes simultaneously.

13. The combination with an aeroplane having a main supporting plane, of a pair 'of collapsible stabilizing planes disposed abovesaid main supporting plane, brackets carried by the main supporting plane and adapted to hold the said stabilizing planes when collapsed, the lower edges of said stabilizing planes being secured to said brackets, levers connected with the stabilizing planes, and means for operating said levers to extend or collapse said planes.

14. The combination with an aeroplane having a main supporting plane, of collapsible stabilizing planes, pneumatic means for extending said stabilizing planes simultaneously and for collapsing them simultaneously, a reversing lever for said pneumatic means, an elevating plane, and a stop for said reversing lever controlled by the movement of the elevating plane.

FREDRICK F. FOOTE. Witnesses:

H. E. Brown, J. G. ADAMS. 

